COVID-19 has placed unprecedented pressure on health systems globally, whereas simultaneously stimulating unprecedented levels of transformation. Here, we review digital adoption that has taken place during the pandemic to drive improvements in ophthalmic clinical care, with a specific focus on out-of-hospital triage and services, clinical assessment, patient management, and use of electronic health records. We show that although there have been some successes, shortcomings in technology infrastructure prepandemic became only more apparent and consequential as COVID-19 progressed. Through our review, we emphasize the need for clinicians to better grasp and harness key technology trends such as telecommunications and artificial intelligence, so that they can effectively and safely shape clinical practice using these tools going forward.

This chapter focuses on the cornea and conjunctiva. It first discusses corneal anatomy and physiology, corneal nutrition, and conjunctival anatomy and physiology. Next, it outlines history taking for anterior segment disease. It then discusses clinical knowledge areas, including blepharitis, staphylococcal hypersensitivity disorders, dry eye disease, conjunctivitis, cicatrizing conjunctival disease, conjunctival degeneration, conjunctival neoplasia, corneal degeneration, infectious keratitis (bacterial, fungal, and viral), interstitial keratitis, peripheral ulcerative keratitis, metabolic and drug-induced keratopathies, corneal dystrophies, contact lenses, corneal ectasia, keratoplasty, anterior uveal tumours, anterior segment trauma, chemical injury, and refractive surgery. Practical skills, such as the removal of a corneal foreign body, and corneal sutures, are also discussed.

No abstract